


Glimmering Gold

by macandcaseus



Series: Soleil Spice [2]
Category: Purple Hyacinth - Ephemerys & Sophism (Webcomic)
Genre: F/M, also will's mom and kym's parents but idk their names either, i named her roseanna but idk what her real name is oops, idk what to tag this as but on the spice scale it's a 7/10 so, im sorry will's piano, spicy angst babey, that Darcy girl is there for a bit, this was supposed to just be spice but uh i got carried away
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-15
Updated: 2020-11-15
Packaged: 2021-03-10 01:56:13
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,864
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27576182
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/macandcaseus/pseuds/macandcaseus
Summary: “Do you…” he whispered, his voice failing him. He cleared his throat. “Do you have any other ideas of what we could do to piss off my father?”She swallowed, a pink glow darkening across her cheeks. “Maybe. One.”“Do tell,” he whispered, leaning forward.
Relationships: William Hawkes/Kym Ladell
Series: Soleil Spice [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2009368
Comments: 12
Kudos: 77





	Glimmering Gold

**Author's Note:**

> Part of the Soleil Spice series: A KyWi Collaboration by various Ph Fanfic Writers ☀️

The end of the day brought silence and sunset to the office. Though William usually would have appreciated the quiet, taking this moment of calm to finish up the last few remnants of paperwork or preparations for the next day, the golden sun illuminating Kym next to him as she packed up her bag and cleared coffee cups from her desk was entirely too distracting.

Neither had spoken since Lila had left about ten minutes ago. Even Kym was usually worn out by the end of the day, and it wasn’t often that she was up to the kinds of shenanigans that she got into throughout the mornings and afternoons. Will had a reason, though, that he had been hoping the two of them would be the last in the office today, but now every time he tried to ask her, his words failed when he would look up from his desk and see her quick movements from her desk to the bin of coffee cups and the way she packed away her belongings with the same precision that made her such a talented shot. Soon enough, she flitted out of the office to the locker room to change back into her civilian clothes for the journey home.

Will tapped his pen on his desk, trying to ignore his increasing heart rate as he waited to see if she would come back. He knew she would, most likely, to say goodbye … ever since the night they walked back to his apartment together, she usually made a point to tell him goodbye when she left.

A few sentences written on his report later, movement in the doorway caught his attention, and he looked up. “Lieutenant, I have a question for you,” Kym said, coming to lean on his desk.

Will furrowed his brow. “What?”

“What’s on your mind that’s been keeping you from taking your eyes off of me since Lila left?” She placed her face in her hands, a teasing smile spreading across her lips.

“I—” Will blinked, his mind going blank for the briefest of seconds. Memory returned to him, and he cleared his throat, recollecting himself and letting out a sigh, trying to let out some of his nerves as well. “I was wondering if you’re doing anything Saturday evening?”

Kym’s smile slipped off of her face. Her eyes widened, and she straightened. “No. Why?”

He rolled the pen between his fingers, making sure that he didn’t let his gaze wander from her out of anxiety. “My father is hosting a dinner party at his home, and I’d like for you to come.” When her eyes went even wider, he quickly added, “Lauren will be there too, so I thought you two might like to spend some time together during the party. I know she’s not always thrilled to attend things like this, but I understand if this isn’t something you’d be interested in—”

“Of course I’m interested. I’d love to come.” She gave him a soft smile, but her eyes were shining with excitement, and a warmth spread throughout Will’s chest, and he smiled back without even thinking.

“Okay, good. It’s a formal event … I’m sure you could ask Lauren what she’s wearing. I’ll ... I’ll pick you up from your house?”

“That sounds great.” She clapped, bouncing on her toes. “Oh, this is so exciting! An official invite to the illustrious Hawkes mansion. Rubbing elbows with the highest in society,” she said, twirling and letting out a laugh. “Eating fancy foods and drinking even fancier drinks, right?”

“I—I suppose so,” he said, snapping himself from the brief trance he had fallen into watching her excitement. “I’m glad you’re excited.”

She beamed at him. “You’re so gonna regret inviting me, but yes. I am excited.”

“What—what does _that_ mean?”

Kym backed up to the door, still grinning. “Too late. I’m invited. Even if you don’t show up to my house on Saturday, I’ll be walking to your dad’s. See you tomorrow, Willame! You can’t get out of this now.”

She gave him a salute and slammed the door behind her, causing him to flinch. _Ladell …_

But that look on her face when he had said he wanted her to be there … surprised, but her mouth twitching into a small, barely-suppressed smile …

 _She’ll have a great time on Saturday._ He looked up to the door, where she had just been standing. _We both will_.

#

Before six pm Saturday evening, Will arrived at Kym’s house and knocked on the door. All day, he had been worrying—worrying about what to wear, what the party would bring from his father, whether or not Kym still wanted to go. Surely she would’ve told him by now if she had changed her mind? What if something came up last minute? What if—

The door swung open, and Will was greeted with Kym—no. _This must be Kym’s mother_. Her dark blue hair was longer, pulled back in a bun, and she had smile lines around her eyes and mouth, which wrinkled when she set her eyes on Will. “Oh, you must be Lieutenant Hawkes! Please, dear, come in. Kym’s still getting ready, but she should be down here any minute now.”

“Thank you, Mrs. Ladell. It’s so nice to meet you,” he said, giving her a smile back.

A man— _Kym’s father_ —leaned his head out from a room next to the entryway. “Ah, Mr. Hawkes is here? I can’t believe we finally get to meet the lieutenant we’ve heard so much about.” He came to greet Will with a handshake, giving him an approving nod after looking over his suit. “You have great taste in suits, son.”

“Oh, thank you sir,” Will smoothed his tie instinctively.

“He sure does. Isn’t he every bit as handsome as Kymmy’s said he is?”

A jolt went through Will, electricity numbing his veins. He turned back to look as Mrs. Ladell. “Kym’s said what—”

From the stairway behind him, Kym’s familiar voice called out. “Mom, I can’t find that necklace you said I could borrow— “

Will looked around, gaze falling on her as she came down the stairs, and both stopped when their eyes met. Will’s heart and breath froze in his chest. In the remaining rays of sun that poured in from the window above her, she shone. Her jumpsuit was white, with gold detailing around the pants’ hems and the neckline that dipped into a V, leaving just enough to the imagination that his mind wandered there— _Stop thinking about that_ , he chastised himself, his face warming. The fading sunlight glinted off of gold detailing cinched around her waist, and the desire to wrap his hand around that shimmering gold and pull her close washed over him, and, not knowing what else to do, he stuffed his hands in his pockets.

Kym blinked, and her usual smile lit up her face again. “Ah, Will, I see you’ve met my parents. Mom, Dad, I see you’ve met my lieutenant.”

Before he could think of anything else to say, Will opened his mouth. “You don’t … you look fine without the necklace. I mean, better than fine, you look great, I just …” he shook his head, squeezing his eyes shut. “I mean, we still have time. My driver can wait as long as needed.”

As a different kind of smile crept onto Kym’s face, one that Will knew all too well said, _I’m so teasing you about that,_ Mrs. Ladell said, “Oh honey, I thought I left it out for you. You stay here and I’ll go look.” She moved around Will and squeezed past Kym, giving her daughter a little nudge down the rest of the stairs as she passed behind her. Kym shot her mom a playfully irritated look, but came to stand in front of Will, taking in his appearance with her glimmering amber eyes.

“You look fine without your necklace too,” she said, reaching out to twirl his tie around her finger.

Telling himself the blush in his cheeks was embarrassment, he clasped her hand in his, pulling it away from his tie, though he was still smiling. “Thanks, Sergeant,” he said, rolling his eyes.

To the side of them, Mr. Ladell cleared his throat, and Will’s back straightened as he took a small step back from Kym. Amusement lit Mr. Ladell’s eyes, though he kept the rest of his face stern – barely, Will noticed when his eyebrows twitched ever-so-slightly. “You treat her well tonight, alright?” he said.

Will nodded. “Yes sir, of course.”

Kym crossed her arms, shaking her head at her father. “Don’t take him too seriously, Willame. Dad’s a softie.”

“Hey, I would’ve had him fooled, Kymmy,” Mr. Ladell said, pointing at her.

She laughed. “No way dad, Will’s not that stupid,” she said, poking his forehead.

“Hey—” Will swatted at her hand, but she had already stepped away from him, sticking her tongue out.

“Kym, I don’t know how you didn’t see it,” Mrs. Ladell said, coming down the stairs, something cupped in her palm. “Aren’t you supposed to be attentive to details?”

“Sorry, Mom, I was in a rush!” Kym said as her mother draped the necklace over her head and clasped it in the back.

A small sapphire set in a golden sunburst settled on her chest. “That’s beautiful,” Will said, his voice soft.

As Kym smiled, a gentle pink rising to her cheeks, Mrs. Ladell said, “Oh, it’s an old family piece. We bring it out for _special occasions_.” She grinned at Will.

“Mom…” Kym groaned and rolled her eyes. “It’s really not that big of a deal,” she said to Will.

“Are you ready to go?” Will asked. Kym nodded, breezing past him to grab her coat from the coat rack. Both Mr. and Mrs. Ladell moved closer, Mrs. Ladell squeezing Kym in a hug, Mr. Ladell offering Will another handshake and a “Nice to meet you,” before they switched places; Mr. Ladell wrapped his arms around his daughter while Mrs. Ladell patted Will’s cheeks, saying, “Oh, do come back sometime, we’d love to have you for dinner here. It’s the least we could do.”

“That … that sounds really nice,” Will said, his voice quiet compared to the friendly bickering between Kym and her father. He looked at them, watching as they shot jokes back and forth between each other, and his throat tightened.

_They all love each other so much._

At last, the Ladells disentangled themselves from one another, and Mr. Ladell was opening the door, waving for Will and Kym to go.

With the door shutting behind them, Will headed to his car, opening its door and turning back to Kym. “After you, Sergeant.”

“What a gentleman,” Kym said, patting his cheek as she got into the car.

 _Gentleman_. The word, indicating his class, echoed in Will’s head as he walked around to his side of the backseat. _The backseat, because I don’t need to drive myself.._ His driver checked to be sure they were still heading to his father’s house once Will was inside. “Yes, thank you.” _My father’s house … my father’s_ mansion. He looked to Kym. She looked the part … God, did she look it. But that wouldn’t matter to his father. All he would see was a middle-class citizen unfit to associate with his family. _Why did I ask her to come to this—_

“Will?”

Her voice brought him back to reality, and the concern on her face grounded him. “What?”

She glanced to the driver, back to Will, and spoke in a hushed voice, leaning closer to him. “Lauren told me what to expect from your father. I just want you to know … I’m ready,” she said with a nod.

Will sighed, shutting his eyes in frustration. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t even think about it when I invited you. I just thought you’d enjoy the party, and now you’re going to have to worry about him—”

Kym shook her head. “Oh, I’m not worried. I meant I’m ready to prove him wrong.”

Will’s breath caught for the second time since he had been with her that night. His eyes searched her face, which was set with determination. _Has she been wearing lipstick this entire time?_ With the sun setting, the streetlamps were beginning to light up, and each one they passed caught in her hair, illuminating the delicate strands, highlighting the angles of her face, the curve of her neck…

He cleared his throat, sitting back up— _when did I lean in—_ and said, “Well. I look forward to that. Truly.”

The rest of the car ride passed in silence, but Will’s mind was churning, thinking about all the ways his father could be an ass to Kym, whether or not he would have the strength to stand up to him, wondering if it was too late to ask the driver to turn around and drop Kym back off at her home—but when he would glance over at her, looking out the window, the smallest smile on her face, his resolve strengthened. _I want her there. That’s all that matters._

At last, the car pulled up to the front of his father’s mansion. Will got out, hurrying around the car to open the door for Kym.

“I am perfectly capable of doing that myself, you know,” she said as she got out.

“I know.” He smiled at her, and she returned it.

He didn’t know who reached first, but once the car door was closed, their arms were linked, and he was leading her to the imposing doors of the Hawkes mansion. Will took a deep breath, and a pressure around his arm made him look down at Kym.

She was smiling at him, squeezing his arm. “It’s going to be a great time.”

He returned her smile, but it was weak. He didn’t have the heart to tell her just how worried he really was.

Will pushed the door open, the swirl of voices coming to circle around them, and they stepped inside. When the door closed with a thud that was much louder than Will ever remembered that door being, his father’s stern gaze met his, and his heart pounded, mouth going dry in an instant.

Stefan Hawkes pushed through the crowd, his cane striking the floor like a drum of a funeral procession. Will’s posture straightened, and he composed his face without even thinking of it.

His father stopped in front of him and Kym, not even sparing her a glance. “William,” his father said, a chill colder than the December air radiating off of the word. “It took you long enough to arrive.” He looked down to Kym, face shifting from disapproval to more of a disgust. “Who’s this?”

Will moved his hand over Kym’s, still wrapped around his arm. “This is Sergeant Kym Ladell of the 11th precinct.”

Stefan’s eyes narrowed. “Ladell… I don’t think I recognize that name. Who are your parents?”

Will’s jaw tensed. _You know everything about my precinct. You’re only doing this because she’s not like us—_

Before he could think of anything to say, though, Kym replied, “Oh, you never would’ve met them, but I can assure you they’re two of the kindest people you ever would meet. They sure did take a liking to Will when he came to pick me up.” Her eyes moved through the crowd before locking on someone. “Oh, I see Lauren. Will, let’s go say hi.”

She started to walk in Lauren’s direction, pulling Will along with her, but both stopped when Stefan placed a hand on Will’s shoulder. “I would like a word with my son first. Alone.”

Will swallowed, but pulled out of Kym’s grasp. “You go say hi. I’ll be right there.” When she hesitated, he nodded, and she nodded back before walking to their friend. As he turned back to his father, he tried to control the hammering in his chest, but that cold stare morphing into a raging fire only made his heart thrum faster, his chest tightening and nerves rattling throughout his arms.

“Why did you bring her here?” his father asked, voice low.

Will swallowed, though his throat was still dry. “Because I wanted to show my sergeant appreciation for all the hard work she’d done and everything she’s helped me with these past couple years.”

Though his face remained unchanged, Will saw his father’s grip on the head of his cane tighten. “Do you know what it looks like for me to have someone like her mingling in this household?”

Will’s eyebrow twitched, and before he could think of something else to say, he said, an edge creeping into his voice, “I don’t know what you mean, Father. Sergeant Ladell is one of the most brilliant, hardworking officers I’ve ever had the pleasure of working with. Not to mention she’s one hell of a shot. You should ask her to demonstrate her skill with a gun – you’ll see why she’s one of the most respected officers in the APD.”

Another partygoer came and tapped Stefan on his shoulder. “Stefan, you were going to show my wife and I your new pieces?” he asked.

Stefan fixed will with a stare that said, _We will be continuing this discussion,_ but nodded to the man. “Yes, of course. Come with me.” He stalked off, a small group of people trailing in his wake. Once he was around the corner, Will let out his breath, clenching his fists to stop the trembling. Ignoring the questioning glances of the people he recognized but didn’t really know, he made his way to where Kym was standing with Lauren and Chief Sinclair.

“Why didn’t you get a plus one for your _boyfriend_?” Kym was saying to Lauren as Chief Sinclair laughed at Lauren’s irritated expression.

“I didn’t _want_ to—Will!” Lauren’s face slid into relief at his approach.

“Hi Lauren, Chief Sinclair. I’m glad you two could make it.”

“We’re glad to be here. Now, I’d better make my rounds, leave you kids to yourselves.” Chief Sinclair gave Will and Kym handshakes and patted Lauren on her head before approaching a group of people, slipping into the conversation with ease.

“It’s been a bit since your father’s had a party like this here. Does that mean … I mean, is your mother’s health improving at all?” Lauren asked.

Will pressed his lips together, eyes drifting to the hall that curved around to his mother’s room. “She’s … the same.”

Kym crossed her arms. “That seems insensitive of your father. Hosting a party like this while his wife is here, but can’t attend.”

A spike of anger jabbed Will’s heart, but he closed his eyes, taking a deep breath and letting it pass out of him. “Yeah. Well. I can’t control what my father decides to do in his house.”

Drinks and hors d’oeuvres were passed around by the servants, and Will made sure to greet each one that approached him and his friends. At one point, Blanca came around, and they fell into a conversation about her son—“He’s finally becoming interested in his father’s business! We were afraid he was going to waste his life away before he had the chance to get started.”—and Will responded with a laugh and a promise to visit her husband’s bakery someday. When he turned back to Kym and Lauren, he noticed that Kym had been watching him, a smile gracing her lips.

“What?” he asked.

“It’s just so sweet, how you interact with your servants,” she said with a shrug.

Next to Kym, Lauren was sipping her champagne, looking back and forth between them. When she noticed Will looking at her, she smirked. “Isn’t it so sweet of him, Kym?” she said.

Will cleared his throat, looking down, hoping it wasn’t obvious how warm his face was.

A few minutes passed, and the ding of a fork on a glass rang through the room. Conversations quieted and people looked in the direction of the noise. A servant stood in front of the doors to the dining room. “If everyone would please follow me, we’ll be happy to seat you and begin serving this evening’s meal,” he said.

The guests filed into the dining room, and Will made sure he remained at Kym’s side as the people pushed closer together. When he reached the doorway, though, a too-familiar, heavy hand fell on his shoulder, stopping him in his tracks.

“You’ll be sitting beside me, William,” his father said.

He was able to spare a single glance at Kym before his father steered him to the head of the table. Stefan indicated to the chair on his right side, and Will sank into it, the carved seatback pressing into his spine.

He was too caught up in the anxieties tumbling through his thoughts that he only heard his father talking to him when a woman slid into the seat beside him.

“William, I hope you use this time to have a nice talk with Miss Darcy while we eat tonight.”

He was facing Roseanna Darcy. They’d met before, of course—his father had been trying to push a marriage between them for years at this point—but instead of returning her smile, all he could do was look to the other end of the table, where Kym was sitting beside Lauren, fingers tight around her champagne glass, eyes steely before she looked away, pretending she had been paying attention to Chief Sinclair the whole time.

“How have you been, Will? I’m sure it’s just chaos at the police station at the moment,” Roseanna said.

“Yeah, it’s been … busy. We’re handling it well, though. How have things been with you?”

“Oh, things have been good,” she said with a nod. “My friend Cordelia and I have been going to watch the Circus Royal a lot recently. There’s always something interesting going on there.”

“Mm, yeah, my patrol unit goes past them on our rounds each day.”

Her eyes lit up, and she clapped her hands. “Oh, that’s always something to look forward to! Though I’m sure you don’t have much chance to actually stop and enjoy yourselves, do you.”

Will smiled, glancing to Kym, a tinge shooting through his chest when he saw she was pointedly not looking at him and Roseanna. “Well, the first day they were set up, my sergeant was challenged to a marksmanship contest.”

“Really! How did she do?”

Will glanced back to Roseanna, pride glowing in his chest. “Three out of three bullseyes. On a swinging target, no less.”

Roseanna’s jaw dropped. “Wow. You must be proud to have her on your side.”

Will nodded, the warmth spreading throughout the rest of his body now. “Yeah. I am.”

The first course was served, some kind of soup, and the chatter and champagne continued flowing around the table. He and Roseanna made polite conversation, prompted by his father’s glare every time they fell into too long of a silence. Throughout the first course, though, Will kept stealing glances at Kym, and every now and then their eyes would meet, and his heartbeat would stutter.

Towards the end of the first course, after another awkward chain of conversation with Roseanna petered off, he looked back to Kym only to see her raise her spoon to her mouth, dip the tip of her tongue into it, and make a face, pouring it back into the bowl. As soon as he snorted, she met his eyes, tongue still stuck out, and winked at him. He let out as controlled of a laugh as he could, but Roseanna still noticed, looking around to Kym.

“She’s your sergeant, right?” she asked.

“Ah, yes,” Will said, slipping behind the façade his father had crafted for him.

“She seems really nice.”

Will tilted his head. “I don’t know if ‘nice’ is _always_ the best word to describe her with…”

Next to him, the table rumbled as his father pushed his chair out to stand up. Everyone quieted, turning to look at him.

“I think it would be beneficial for everyone to give a small introduction of themselves before we begin our main course. I just want to ensure that everyone is well acquainted, that we know just who we’re eating with tonight.”

Will’s eyes narrowed as he looked around the table. _Everyone here should know each other fairly well … except for Kym._ Ice shot through his veins, and his head whipped back to Stefan. “Father, are you sure we need to—”

“William,” his father said with a warning tone. Panic gripped Will’s throat, and he shrank back into his chair. _Dammit. He’s doing this. I can’t stop him._

Stefan gestured to the man sitting beside him. Thus began the line of introductions, all the way down the table, of Sirs and Ladies and business tycoons, all of whom Will had met at least once in his life, only confirming his suspicion that his father was only doing this to make a fool of Kym. _I need to stop this before it gets to her._

“Oh, my turn? Hi everyone. I’m Sergeant Kym Ladell from the eleventh precinct. William and Lauren and I work together, so he was gracious enough to invite me tonight.”

Will looked up from his near-empty bowl of soup, heart pounding. _Shit._

“I do believe, Miss Ladell, that you’re the only person here tonight who I haven’t previously met. Tell me, what do your parents do?”

Will turned to his father, who had his typical stone expression fixed on Kym instead of Will this time. _SHIT._

Before he could stop his mind from racing long enough to figure out something to do, Kym gave his father a smile and said, “My mother is a cook in a restaurant. My father works as a teller at a bank.”

Stefan’s eyes narrowed. “And my son decided to bring you here this evening?”

“Father, that’s enough,” Will said, staring at his bowl. He looked up to see that stone gaze focused on him now, along with the stares of everyone else around the table.

He picked up his champagne, talking a sip as he glanced to Kym.

The small smile she was giving him sparkled brighter than the carbonation on his tongue.

He tuned out the rest of the introductions, staring at the bubbles rising in his glass, fury with his father overtaking any other thoughts. It wasn’t until a servant replaced his soup with a plate of steak that he realized the introductions were done, and he was perfectly fine with having been skipped.

“—your wife?” he heard one of the women sitting across from him say to his father.

“We’re making sure she’s receiving the best medical attention money can buy. She’s sorry she can’t be with us tonight, but she still wanted everyone to be able to get together.”

White-hot anger constricted Will’s throat and chest. For a moment, his vision blurred, and all he could think of was throwing the rest of his champagne in his father’s face.

But as instantly as that rage came, he pushed it down, bottling it up with all the rest that he kept hidden away.

“Excuse me for a moment,” he muttered, pushing his chair out with a scrape. He walked out of the dining room and back into the main hall. He covered his face with his hands, taking a deep breath, exhaling on a groan.

 _I should go visit her_.

His feet took the path to her room without his direction – down the hall, make a turn, another turn, and there was the door. He even avoided the creaking floorboard outside her room instinctively before turning the doorknob and peering inside.

As always, she was in her bed, small and pale amidst all the full, white blankets and pillows. He walked closer and saw that her eyes were closed—his breath caught before he saw that her chest was still rising.

He sat in the chair that was permanently by the side of the bed and reached for her hand. At his touch, her eyes fluttered open, and she gave him a warm smile.

“Good morning. How are you today, Rafael?”

That familiar pang echoed through his heart, and he blinked back his tears. “I’m doing fine, Mother. How are you?”

She sighed happily. “Wonderful. How could I not be with you by my side?”

A humorless laugh escaped Will’s throat, and he sniffed. “I’m glad to hear it.”

His mother frowned. “My love, why are you crying?”

Will wiped at his eyes, squeezing them shut and forcing his sadness to sit deep in his heart beside his anger. “It’s just … been a trying few weeks.”

His mother’s fingertips pressed lightly against his palm—all the strength she was able to muster. “You’ll keep your chin up. You always have, and you always will.”

 _Will_.

A creak outside the door made Will’s head turn. “I’ll be right back,” he said, giving his mother a smile. She closed her eyes again as he stood and crossed to the door.

No one was right outside when he opened the door, but already halfway down the hall was—

“Kym?”

Kym froze, paused, and turned, her eyes wide. “I’m so sorry,” she whispered, “I had no idea that was your mother’s room, I just—” she broke off, biting her lip and pushing her hands into her pockets.

Will stepped out of the room, pulling the door shut, but not latched, behind him. “Did you follow me out of the dining room?”

She cringed, eyes squinted as she looked at him. “Mayyybeeee…”

“I … do you think I’d be mad at you for doing that?” he asked.

She shrugged. “Well, I didn’t mean to interrupt you.”

He furrowed his brow. “Why did you follow me?”

“I mean … you were clearly upset by what your dad did. Just, you know … _fulfilling my duty as sergeant to make sure my lieutenant is alright._ ” She looked to the floor, scuffing her shoe along the wood. “Also, I thought … well, I thought you might be going to play your piano.”

He raised an eyebrow. “And you wanted to listen?”

She crossed her arms. “You’re a talented pianist, Willame. Besides, I needed a break from that room myself.”

That glint in her amber eyes pushed into his chest, a tiny ray of sunshine brightening the darkness that had only been accumulating throughout the evening. He took a deep breath, clearing some of the stress out of his mind as he let the breath go. “Okay. I’ll play some piano for you. Let me just … wish my mother goodnight.”

“Of course,” Kym said, her voice soft.

He pushed the door back open, but stopped. “Would … would you like to meet her? you don’t have to, but—”

“Yes.” Kym came to his side, placing her hand on his shoulder. “I would love to.”

They smiled at each other before Will pushed the door open, allowing Kym to step in first.

“Mother?” Will whispered.

She opened her eyes again. “Oh, good morning, my love. How are you doing today?”

“I’m doing fine. I’d like you to meet someone, if you want to?”

His mother smiled. “Of course, you know I love meeting your friends.”

Will beckoned Kym forward, and she stepped closer to the bed.

“Hello, Mrs. Hawkes. I’m Kym. I’m so happy to meet you,” she said, and the sincerity of the smile she gave his mother made Will’s heart thrum.

“So nice to meet you. I’m so glad my son has such lovely friends.” But her voice was drifting, eyes struggling to stay open.

Will placed his hand on Kym’s back. “We should let her rest.”

“Nice to meet you again, Mrs. Hawkes,” Kym said. But his mother had already fallen asleep again.

They left the room, and it wasn’t until the door was closed behind them that Will realized his hand was still resting on the small of Kym’s back. He pulled away, face warm, and said, “Do you still want to hear me play?”

“Of course I do.”

The two walked through the hallways, Kym’s head constantly turning to look at all the art on the walls and on display. “Your dad really likes to show how much money he has, huh?”

Will sighed. “I am … _so_ sorry for how he behaved at dinner. Truly. If I had thought about how he would treat you…”

“Hey. It’s alright. The thing is,” she said, “I don’t hold him in particularly high regard, so I don’t care what he says about me. Or to me.”

Will’s eyes widened before a laugh jumped out of him. “Well. Good thing you’re wandering his mansion alone, then. He would _hate_ the fact that you’re doing that.”

She tilted her head, smirking. “I’m not alone, though. I’m with you.”

Will’s gaze dropped to the floor. “Yeah. I’m afraid he wouldn’t like that much, either.”

She snorted. “Damn. What _does_ please your dad.”

Before Will could reply, they arrived at the door to his piano room. “Ah. Here we are,” he said, swinging it open.

Kym gasped, and she rushed to the piano. “Will! It’s beautiful!” She looked up at the chandelier above, then spun around, arms outstretched as if she was trying to fill the room with her shining excitement.

It was shining on Will, at least.

The lid was closed—one of the servants must’ve been cleaning recently. _Probably for the best,_ Will thought as he sat on the bench. _I don’t want anyone else coming for a performance tonight._

“What do you want me to play?” he asked, pressing a couple keys, just those few notes already unravelling the tension that had been tightening in his chest all night.

Kym leaned against the side of the piano, resting her head on her hand. “Surprise me,” she said.

Will took a deep breath. He had already decided what song to play, as soon as she had asked him to play for her.

His hands danced across the keys as he played the lullaby from the music box she had listened to after they found Harvey’s body. Instead of singing the melody—he wouldn’t make her listen to him _sing_ as well—he played the notes, the lyrics tumbling through his mind. When he finished the first chorus and began the second verse, he looked up to her.

She was looking down, her watch in her hand, rubbing her thumb over its surface, a small smile on her face.

“I thought you’d be more surprised that I knew this,” he said, continuing to play. “I only learned it because of you.”

She looked at him, her smile turning sheepish. “Well … I kind of … heard you playing it when I left your apartment that night. So…” she blinked. “Wait. You learned it because of me?”

Will’s fingers tripped over each other, and he looked back to the keys to correct himself. “The music box was beautiful. I just … wanted to learn it.”

A moment passed, and Kym slid onto the bench beside him. “Can you teach me?” she asked, her voice low.

Will’s heart pounded, and his hands stopped. “Y-yeah,” he said. “Um … here.” He held out his hand, and she placed hers in it. He lined her fingers up with those on his right hand. “Just … relax. Go along with me.”

Her warmth radiated through him as he slowly proceeded through the lullaby’s melody. It went smoothly for the first few notes—however, when he started to move, she was struggling to keep up, and she began laughing.

“Stop it, Will! You’re just too good for my untalented hands.”

“Just follow along!” he said, laughing with her.

“Do you not see how much bigger your hand is than mine?” She splayed her fingers out, pressing down on Will’s hand, eliciting a cacophony from the piano.

“Kym!”

Her laughter only encouraged his, and a few moments passed of them laughing together, leaning into one another, until they both stopped to catch their breath and Will realized just how close they were sitting. Their fingers all but interlaced on the keys. Their hair brushing because of how close their faces were to one another.

Kym pulled away, standing and walking back to her place at the side of the piano. “I’ll just ruin it. You keep on playing, and I’ll do what I do best … listen.”

Will raised an eyebrow. “You never listen to anything I say.”

She smiled, that laughter still in her eyes. “But I listen to your playing.”

Will opened his mouth, but his heart was hammering too hard to think of any reply, so he looked back to the keys, letting his hands play what they wanted to. A brighter, slightly upbeat melody began to play, and when a few moments passed, he said, “So, aside from my father, I hope you are genuinely enjoying yourself.”

“I am, actually.” Kym crossed her arms and gave him a look, eyebrows raised. “So what’s up with you and that Roseanna Darcy woman?”

Will’s hands stuttered over the keys. He sighed and started playing again. “Nothing. My father wants there to be, but … there’s not. I assure you. We’re friends, and that’s about it.”

Kym smiled. “Good for you for standing up to your dad.” She fell quiet, letting the piano briefly fill the silence again. “You know what would make me enjoy this party even more?”

“Hm?” Will asked, heart in his throat.

Kym turned, bracing her hands on the piano lid, and leapt on top of it, swinging her legs and giving him a mischievous smile. Will opened his mouth to tell her to get down, but before he could, she said, ““Doing things that would purposely piss your dad off.”

Will stopped playing, staring at her with wide eyes. “No. No way.”

She leaned back and waved her hand. “Well. I don’t mean actually doing anything. Kind of.” She gave him a wink, and his heart throbbed. “But like, if you _were_ to do something, what would you do?”

Will looked down, but his mind was blank. “I don’t know.”

Kym sighed. “Come on, there has to be _something_ you’ve always wanted to do that you know would piss him off.”

Will gazed around the room, running through everything that the mansion held that his father prized until the perfect thing surfaced in his mind. “There’s this portrait of me that was painted when I turned twenty hanging in the hallway to my bedroom. I _hate_ it. But Father just goes on about ‘ _tradition’_ and how ‘ _all the men of our family had their portraits painted at twenty_ …’” He gave a bitter laugh. “But I just want to rip it off the wall and set it on fire.”

Kym’s laugh rang through the room. “Damn, Willame! So I can’t commit arson with the precinct paperwork, but you can with this portrait?”

Will rolled his eyes. “If you saw it, you would understand.”

“Well, now I have to see it.”

“Absolutely not.” He paused, then asked, “Since you’ve been thinking of it apparently, what would you do to piss off my father?”

She smirked. “I seem to be doing a pretty good job just being in his home. But if I wanted to make him _furious_ ,” she said, raising a finger, “I would march back into that dining room and toss that awful soup he fed us right into his face.”

The mental image of soup and vegetables splashed across his father’s face, dripping down his shirt, staining his immaculate clothes, made Will burst into laughter, and Kym soon joined him. Warmth glowed in him, a speck of sunlight that was growing brighter when he heard their laughs harmonizing with one another.

As their laughter faded, he gazed at her, smiling. “What?” she asked.

His breath caught in his chest, and he shook his head. “Get off the piano. I don’t want you hurting it.”

She scooted further onto it.

Will tilted his head. “Kym…”

Their eyes locked, and she pushed herself across the lid, kicking her shoes onto the floor and folding her legs to the side. “Relax. If I was hurting it, I wouldn’t be up here.”

He gazed up at her, at her unblinking eyes, shining in the soft moonlight coming through the window, at her lips, slightly open, lipstick rubbed off from eating and drinking throughout the evening. Her chest was rising and falling, her breath quickening, and _Shit, don’t look at her chest, Will—_

“Do you…” he whispered, his voice failing him. He cleared his throat. “Do you have any other ideas of what we could do to piss off my father?”

She swallowed, a pink glow darkening across her cheeks. “Maybe. One.”

“Do tell,” he whispered, leaning forward.

She swung her legs forward, planting them on either side of his hands, still resting on the keys, sending discordant notes echoing through the room, and rested her elbows on her thighs. “You tell me,” she said, her voice low, rasping.

Before he could think, Will was reaching for her face, standing to meet her, and as his fingers pushed along her jawline and into her hair, he brought his lips to hers, and sunlight burst through his heart and mind, an inferno blinding him to anything aside from the palms of her hands pressing against the back of his head and neck, holding him close, her body leaning into his as she kissed him back. 

Will lost himself in the sensation of her lips on his, barely suppressing a shiver as her fingers slipped under the collar of his shirt, tracing the top of his spine. When one of her legs wrapped around his back, pulling him even closer, he broke away from their kiss, his heart pounding so hard it thrummed through the rest of his body. “Are you doing this because you know it’ll piss of my dad?” he asked, his breath fast in his chest.

“Kind of.” She smiled. “But mostly because I really, really want to.”

He ran his hand down her back, coming to a stop at the base of her spine, and he pulled her closer to him, and she let out a soft moan through closed lips. He pressed his forehead to hers. “I’m glad we’re on the same page.”

Her head leaned back as he kissed along her jaw, down her neck, pulling gasps from her throat as he nipped at her delicate skin, avoiding the chain of her necklace. She looped his tie around her hand and tugged him forward, pushing herself back further onto the piano.

“Really? You wanna do this on the piano?” Will asked, breathless.

She quirked an eyebrow and gave him a grin. “You _don’t?_ ”

Heat rushed through him, and he let out an involuntary groan. Kym laughed as he stepped up on the bench, kicking off his shoes as he crawled on top of the piano with her.

Will’s hands threaded into Kym’s dark hair as she pulled his tie loose and unbuttoned the top few buttons of his shirt, pressing kisses to his collarbone, constellation bursts of heat across his skin. He ran his hands down her back, to her hips, gripping them and pulling her onto his lap. She moaned softly in his ear, and his desire built higher as he anchored her hips over his.

They broke apart, panting, and with her mussed hair, flushed skin, kiss-tinted lips, and eyes that shined with need, she was glowing in his arms, and though he thought he had been drawn to her light before, nothing could have prepared him for how much he wanted her at this moment.

His eyes dropped to her shoulder, where the strap of her jumpsuit had slipped down. She looked, too, just noticing, and took his hand, placing it on her other shoulder, slipping his fingers under that strap as well.

He pushed it down as her hands teased the hem of his shirt, tucked into his pants. “Please,” he whispered as his hands covered her breasts and he leaned in to kiss her neck again.

She pulled his shirt from his waistband, and he helped her fumble with the buttons. Soon enough, his shirt was open, and they were pressed together, sparks flickering where their skin touched.

She kissed him, fierce, passionate, and their hips ground together as his fingers curled into her back, her gasps only encouraging him to run his nails up and down her skin. She still tasted like champagne, and oh, was he drunk on her as her arms wrapped around his shoulders, their kiss deepened, and he let out a groan as she bit into his lip, shivering as her laughter echoed in his mouth.

“William, are you—”

Will and Kym froze, his lip still trapped between her teeth as his father opened the door and looked into the room.

He and his father locked eyes, and for once, Stefan was shocked into speechlessness. Kym slowly let go of Will’s lip, and he pressed his hand into her back, holding her close to him.

No one spoke. Stefan’s stone face froze to ice, and though that look would normally chill Will to his core, the warmth he held inside and in his arms, for once, prevented that.

Stefan backed out of the room and slammed the door behind him. Will listened for the retreating _thud, thud, clack_ of his footsteps and cane until it faded, and he and Kym were alone once more.

The two turned back to each other, shock painting their faces before they burst into laughter. For the first time since he could remember, Will’s heart and shoulders felt light, unburdened by any sort of responsibility, buoyed by the kisses Kym was pressing to his lips, his cheeks, his forehead and nose. He caught her lips in his, and they let their heartbeats settle into each other in this kiss, allowing one another space to exist with the other in their arms.

Will pulled away, but pressed his forehead to Kym’s, her eyes taking up all of his vision. “I don’t want to stay for the rest of this party. Partly because my father’s gonna kill me, but mostly because…” He brushed a piece of her hair behind her ear, only for it to fall back out again. He rubbed his thumb over her cheek, and she leaned into his touch. “I want to do this without the fear of someone walking in on us.” He looked to the door, pressing his lips together. “We’re gonna have to sneak out of here without anyone seeing us leave, though.”

Kym laughed. “Will. Don’t worry. I got this.”

He squeezed his eyes shut, the memories of their early days at the precinct and various stories Lauren had told him over the years falling into place in his mind. “Oh. Not the windows.”

She grinned, eyes alight with excitement. “Yes, the windows, Will!”

He pulled her in for another kiss, though she still laughed through it, and he couldn’t help but smile, too.

He was losing herself in her sunshine-gold happiness, and he didn’t want to find his way out anytime soon.

**Author's Note:**

> Epilogue:  
> That night, Stefan died of being a crusty old man shocked to see his 23-year-old son defying him for, like, the first time. Lauren Sinclair, ditched by her friends and left hanging with her uncle and some stuffy rich people, decided on her own to leave and thought that she was the one to abandon Kym and Will. At Stefan’s funeral, she used her detective skills to figure out the events that led to his death. Roseanna Darcy also didn’t want to marry Will – the woman is an absolute lesbian, so, as much as she liked Will, she was never interested in him in that way. While Kieran wasn’t in this story, one can only assume he was being his classic emo self in his apartment after finding out that the three people he’s closest to at the precinct all went to a party without him.
> 
> Thank you so much to the other writers who have written or are going to write more for the Soleil Spice series!! <3


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